I hate bear bells
I don't really hate bear bells but they are my least favorite means of warning bears that people are approaching. This entry is to discuss some of the noise-making methods I've encountered and some of my thoughts. Sometimes hikers are more enthusiastic about noise-making than I like but I do recognize the importance of warning grizzlies of people and that my threshold for making noise may be different from others and not necessarily optimum.
Beyond old jokes, I'm uncertain how effective bear bells really are, others with much more knowledge than I have expressed this concern, a search on Google shows several relevant hits. Also, the noise from the bells may make it harder to hear bear sounds. But mainly I dislike bear bells because they aren't easy to turn off and so on crowded tails and in parking areas you hear their noise when not needed. Once on Glacier Park's Highline trail, I was followed for nearly 5 miles by a couple with bells. I tried stopping, speeding up, and slowing down but they continued to pace me.
Some people whistle more or less continuously; something I can't do. To me, the volume isn't enough and it sounds like birds. Of course I'm not a bear but I doubt that whistling is very effective.
Recently, Glacier Park has suggested clapping hands in addition to talking loudly or other noise making strategies. That is difficult to do if using hiking poles but otherwise seems easy and flexible.
My usual method is to talk loudly or shout especially when alone and going into a wooded area or other area out of view. I usually shout something like 'coming up the trail' so I don't have to think about what I'm shouting. I've always thought shouting 'hey bear' to be a bad idea; more like you are calling the bear. With shouting, I can stop and listen, it isn't continuous. The only problem is I sometimes run out of wind.
Occasionally I meet people who seem to be quite anxious about bears and make noise in areas that I consider unnecessary. Now again, I'm not an expert and maybe they have a point. It is just on a crowded trail, lots of noise becomes distracting. A couple of years ago, I met a man hiking into the Alpine Lakes region of Washington's central Cascades who was shouting every few minutes 'hey bear' quite loudly. Washington does have a few grizzlies but in the north Cascades not known to go as far south as we were hiking. Also, there probably were 50 people ahead of him on the trail or at the closer lake. While he couldn't have know that, the number of cars at the trailhead should have been a clue. I felt sorry for the couple about 1/4 mile ahead of him listening to him all the way up the trail.
Labels: Animals
WA hiker recently shot by hunter
Recently, a Washington state hiker was shot and killed by a bear hunter (
link). I've blogged before about hiking during hunting season (
here) and my conclusion was that I am basically comfortable most of the time. This recent incident raises my level of concern even though of itself it does not mean hiking has become more dangerous, simply that the dangers are now more to the forefront of my mind. I also want to keep the relative risks in mind, no other non-hunter has been killed in Washington by a hunter in the last 20 years. In those years, many hikers have been killed by falls, hypothermia, and other risks.
Like many hikers, I don't pay strict attention to hunting seasons. Of course I know when popular seasons are open, the number of obvious hunters makes that apparent. On the other hand some seasons, especially bear seasons, are much less obvious to me. If I don't realize it is hunting season, I may not make an effort to wear brightly colored clothing and not bushwhack or graze on huckleberries. I think I will be more careful about what I wear when hiking. Unfortunately my basic rain and wind shell is solid black, not a good color for hiking during bear hunting season. I have an orange vest but still am uncomfortable with the shell, too much black showing above the vest. I'm not sure what I will do, maybe replace the shell. I'm am already looking for some brighter mid weight tops instead of the black I now use. I do know the hiker killed was wearing a bright blue poncho which one would think should be bright enough to distinguish her from a bear.
I wish there were simple answers, I doubt there are. I wish hunters would not hunt on and around popular hiking trails but they also want access to the backcountry and need to find ways in. Of course I wish all hunters were certain of their target before shooting but experience suggests that isn't likely to occur. Most hunters may be very responsible but it only takes a small percentage of careless hunters for tragedies to occur. Looking at the population as a whole, there is always a percentage of people who are careless or reckless. Hunter safety courses help but do not eliminate the percentage of reckless individuals.
I'm not going to stop hiking during hunting seasons. I will weigh the risks and take appropriate safety measures.
Labels: Hiking hazards
Digital Camera - what I bought
In my earlier post
here I discussed buying a Canon PowerShot SX100 IS. After doing some more research I decided to get the Canon A720 IS, see a review
here. I wanted the higher zoom on the SX100 but I also wanted the optical viewfinder. The last 2 weekends I have played with my new camera while hiking and so far I'm quite happy with it. Both weekends have been sunny in the open and I'm glad I opted for the optical viewfinder, even at the brightest the LCD screen washed out for me. The camera is lightweight and easy to use for a beginner but has lots of more advanced features I can grow into.
I'm still learning to use the macro for closeups but the rather orange Indian Paintbrush and the Alpine Cinquefoil came out fairly well.
I also liked the mushroom and spruce grouse hen below.
Downloads of the few pictures I've taken have been quick and painless. The editing software which comes with the camera isn't great but it is enough for basic functions and I can get more advanced editing software if I wish. Landscape pictures have been okay, not outstanding so I have more learning to do there. I do know I will continue to use this camera, unlike my previous digital camera which collected dust.
Deception Creek, Alpine Lakes Wilderness
Over the weekend I hiked along the Deception Creek trail. Unlike many of the trails into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area it is relatively lightly traveled, probably because there are no lakes within easy day hiking distance. I was only able to hike in about 2.5 miles because the bridge across Sawyer Creek was down.
While I was at the bridge, 2 men were working on rebuilding it. Extensive trail work, removing downed trees and building up wet areas, had been done this year on the first 2 miles of trail. By next year, this should be a very nice trail indeed if windstorms and floods do not remove the improvements.
This is a good summer hike through old-growth forest but not usually wet. I saw lots of bunch berries in bloom.
I liked this bridge over Deception Creek about 1/2 mile from the trailhead.
And the view from the bridge:
Besides myself and the 2 men working on the bridge, I saw only 1 set of backpackers who camped just before the downed bridge. There were a few mosquitoes but not many and few flies. The weather was dry with alternating sun and clouds and cool enough that hiking was very pleasant. I'm looking forward to hiking this trail again once the Sawyer Creek bridge is repaired.
Labels: North Cascades hiking
Digital camera for hiking
I want a new digital camera to take pictures when I'm hiking. I have an older digital camera but I take such poor pictures with it I've given up and went back to my 35mm with a zoom lens. With it, I can take pictures which satisfy me. I haven't bought a new digital mainly because I haven't been able to decide on a balance of features, mainly zoom, and size and price. I don't want to spent money on another camera I won't use because I can't get a decent picture. However, I look at hiking photos posted on blogs such as
2 Heel Drive and
Walks with Moss, and I am envious of their pictures and the ability to post immediately rather than when I get my film developed.
I think I've found a camera with a blend of features I want, the Cannon PowerShot SX100 IS. It has a 10x optical zoom, uses AA batteries, is reasonably compact, and is in my price range. It is bigger than I would like but about the size of my current digital and 35mm cameras. It won't be as weather resistant as some cameras but I do intend to protect it to a reasonable degree. I also like the Panasonic Lumix TZ5 but not the proprietary battery. I wish it had an optical viewfinder but none of the cameras I've seen in this price and zoom range have one.
Any other suggestions? I want zoom, compact, and easy to use. Standard batteries and memory cards are a plus. I would like rugged but don't need waterproof. I also should state I am not a serious photographer, I don't hike to take photos, I take photos to remind me of my hike.
Yellowstone National Park - hiker friendly?
I love hiking in Yellowstone National Park, I hike there every year, but I have noticed that YNP seems less hiker friendly than other Parks I hike in such as Glacier, Grand Teton, or Canyonlands. YNP isn't hiker unfriendly but the park administration seems to be less hiker friendly than other similar parks.
The most noticeable difference is that the YNP map does not show hiking trails. I know that YNP is a large park and showing the trails on the park map is not adequate for hiking. However, other parks do show major trails on park maps and the GTR
Recreational Map for YNP and Teton shows the trails for both parks. Having the trails shown on the park map can be useful for general planning. I've hiked in Glacier Park less than one quarter of the amount I've hiked in YNP and met more rangers on trails in Glacier who were politely interested in my hike and what animals I had seen. Trailheads in YNP are not always well marked and may have little information about conditions. Also, trail maintenance for at least some trails is poor, bridges fail and are not replaced, trail markers are not replaced or put back up. When I've asked about trails at in YNP, I have sometimes gotten out of date information or been steered toward boardwalks instead of the backcountry. On the positive side, recently I've seen more new trail markers and fallen logs are removed each spring.
I don't wish to be critical of YNP's administration. I know the park has a limited budget and a lot of drains on that budget. The park administration must try to balance conflicting requirement, wildlife and natural resource management against human safety and human desire to see the marvels of YNP and its wildlife. Yet Glacier Park has similar safety issues and manages to appear more hiker friendly. Most visitors do not hike any distance away from the main roads but stay on boardwalks if any walking is done; maybe that is why less resources are given to hikers.
I not alone in feeling YNP is less hiker friendly than other parks, I've heard other hikers also express the sentiment. I wonder if YNP's administration is aware of this perception and if it is deliberate?
Labels: YNP
Various YNP water falls
I went to Yellowstone Park in early June as I have for several years now. This time however I met some friends who had not been to YNP before so I tried to show them the major tourist attractions. Besides thermal features, they like water falls so I made a point of going to some of the many falls within YNP. Of course the first set I showed them were the upper and lower falls of the Yellowstone - the pictures you see associated with the grand canyon of the Yellowstone. We walked along the edge on both sides to each fall.
When we were there it snowed and much of the eastern portion of the park was closed or difficult to reach and we had limited time. I tried to pick waterfalls that were dramatic and reasonably easy to access. We saw Undine, Tower, and Gibbon Falls in the snow. We hiked to Fairy Falls and Osprey Falls, which I mentioned in my last post. The Virginia Cascades road was closed but I showed them the Firehole River falls. I would have liked to go to the southwestern corner and hike into Bechler and Cave Falls but we didn't have time.
Thinking about YNP, I realized there were several falls which we could drive to but did not go to for various reasons. Also I know of several good hikes to falls we didn't get to either. Still we saw at least one waterfall a day which is good enough. I never seem to have enough time in Yellowstone to do all I want to do.
Labels: YNP
